Web offers help in economizing

CecilyFraser

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) - As the U.S. economy continues to waffle, it's becoming more important for consumers to economize on the home front and gain better control of their personal finances.

"There are opportunities to save a lot of money out there."
Paul Jamieson,Gomez.com

The Internet offers a host of resources for tracking monthly expenditures and reducing bills. "There are opportunities to save a lot of money out there," said Paul Jamieson, a financial services analyst at Gomez.

Paying too much for long-distance service? Lowermybills.com will spit out a list of competitive rates in your neighborhood.

No time to comparison shop utility rates? Essential.com lets users sign up to buy electricity, heating oil or natural gas at a discount.

About 38 percent of people in American households with annual income of $75,000 or more research financial information online, according to Roper Starch Worldwide.

Browsing for lower rates

LowerMyBills.com attempts to shrink consumers' expenditures with its comparison-shopping tool for services such as gas, electric, long-distance providers, mortgages and insurance.

Once a user enters their ZIP code and e-mail address, the LowerMyBills generates a list of competing offers in their neighborhood. The site has partnered with 250 vendors and has rates from about 1,000 plans. On average, users will save about $500 a year -- some customers have realized savings of $3,000.

Consumers are likely to realize even more savings now that mortgage rates and interest rates have dropped, founder Matt Coffin said. Bargain-hunting consumers are flocking to the site -- in the past 45 days, traffic has increased 35 percent.

Empowering consumers

The company buys these services at wholesale rates and resells them to consumers, which can result in better deals, said Ronan Winter, Essential's vice president of sales and marketing. Most customers save $100 a year, he said.

Users receive a consolidated bill each month, which can be charged to a credit card. Customers can also examine their calling patterns and electricity online to determine which day of the week they use the most energy or track regularly called phone numbers.

The bigger financial picture

Even consumers who aren't in dire straits may have financial concerns they'd like to address.

It's important to get a sense of your situation and determine what changes you need and are willing to make. Cutting costs is only one part of the savings equation.

Take a hard look at phone plans, credit cards and other monthly expenses, suggested said Mike Kidwell, co-founder of Myvesta.org, a financial-services organization that provides credit and financial assistance.

MyVesta.org's On-Track tool will add up consumers' daily expenditures. Users can also compare their expenses and income to others who are in the same income bracket. The service is available to clients of its Crisis Relief Team and One-Pay programs

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